Mr. Rains defends cases involving the securities laws. He has represented hundreds of companies, officers, and directors in class actions, derivative actions, and SEC enforcement proceedings.
Many of Mr. Rains' clients are technology or life sciences companies. He has successfully resolved securities class action cases for companies like Atmel Corporation, Alcatel, N.A., Scios Nova, Titan Pharmaceuticals, and Interactive Networks.
Recently, Mr. Rains led six independent investigations of stock options backdating. He also defended derivative actions alleging stock option backdating for Novellus Systems, Ultra-Tech Inc., Atmel Corporation, and DiTech Networks. Mr. Rains has handled numerous internal investigations involving accounting issues and sales practices, including several investigations of sales practices in Japan and China.
Mr. Rains also specializes in defending securities class actions and regulatory matters involving broker-dealers and investment companies. Mr. Rains defended Charles Schwab Corporation and its affiliates in class actions alleging market timing and late trading by mutual funds, and he is currently representing Schwab in class actions brought against some of its fixed income mutual funds arising out of investments in mortgage-backed securities. Mr. Rains has also defended Bessemer Trust and other broker-dealers in customer disputes.
Mr. Rains has an active mergers and acquisitions litigation practice, and he regular defends targets and acquirors in litigation in California and Delaware arising from various acquisition and proxy disputes. Recent clients include Atmel Corporation, CBS Marketwatch.com, and Adesa Corporation.
Mr. Rains handles sensitive regulatory matters for individuals investigated or charged with violating the securities laws, including insider trading, accounting irregularities, and stock option backdating. In 2006, he obtained the complete dismissal of fraud charges brought by the SEC against the former chief executive officer of a public software company.
Mr. Rains is a member of the Securities Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association and its subcommittees on class actions and broker-dealer litigation. He is also a member of the San Francisco Bar Association's Securities Litigation Section. At Columbia Law School, he was a Harlan Fiske Stone scholar.